Long Live Rock

Nadya

I had been with Jon for six years. The last year I was going to school across the country from him, but our relationship was stronger than ever. I was almost done with school, and the next step for us was to finally be together again and marry. On Halloween night, 2001, he called to say he was in the hospital and they thought he had pneumonia. Two weeks earlier his family doctor had the same diagnosis for the pain in his arm and prescribed antibiotics. November 2, 2001, Jon calls me on my cell as I'm heading to class. He's crying hysterically, they found a huge mass in his abdomen. He's in the hospital room by himself. His mother had been there but passed out after hearing the news and had to be brought to the ER. It hadn't been detected with an earlier cat scan because it didn't extend the view below the chest. The fully body scan found it. A biopsy will be done.

Two days later. Jon calls me again on my cell on my way to class. He was crying again. The doctors had just told him it was cancer. He was alone again, and the doctor's didn't hesitate to not wait for someone to be with Jon. Surgery was set for Nov. 12.

November 13, 2001. I fly home and am in disbelief. He's in the ICU, his mother by his side. She leaves so that we can be alone. Jon starts crying at the sight of me. I try to be strong for him. He was in the hospital for less than a week recovering from the surgery. They had removed a 12 lbs. tumor the size of a volleyball. The doctors were confident it was all gone. He was home in time to enjoy Thanksgiving with the family.

December 25 -Jon returns to the hospital.

December 25 -Jon is home

December 26 - Jon is in the hospital

January 1- Jon is home

January 3- My birthday, I spend it with Jon at his parents.

January 6- Jon's back in the hospital

January 11- I fly back to the west coast, school's starting

January 18- I withdraw. Jon's not getting better I arrive at the hospital at 11pm. I get to spend all night with him. It was amazing. I had no idea what was ahead. Everyone else did, including Jon. I was the only one that didn't know it was going to happen.

January 19 - Jon dies at 8am I found out days later that the family all knew he was about to die but couldn't bring themselves to tell me before I arrived.